Some of the perennials are still as green and lush as ever--and their beautiful foliage is a most welcome sight in the gardens. Choosing these types of plants ensures the garden beds stay fresh to the very end of fall. I purposely plant these perennials among the ones with beautiful fall color, creating a pleasing "pallet" in the garden beds. As the season progresses, some perennials will gradually die down; others can either be cut down, which I prefer to do, or you can also let the plant and its foliage die off and stay in your bed until spring clean up. I like an easier spring clean up, so I cut down my herbaceous peonies, daylilies, hosta, monkshood, and mums a little later on next month so that the clean up in spring is easier and quicker. Plants that naturally die off and then restart to grow again this time of year are poppies, columbine, delphinium, daylilies, lupine, foxglove veronica, salvia, and iris. I remove all the old, yellowed foliage, seeing the new, bright green, young shoots coming up. Roses, phlox, zinnias, mums and dahlias are still in full bloom--dying off when the first freeze hits. It is a time of rejuvenation for many perennials, and I love it!~
No comments:
Post a Comment